Glad you are ok. Scary experience hitting a deer. They do come out of no where.

On 50 highway just a few miles west of Ely NV I hit a mule deer back in July 2009 with my 2003 996 Turbo. The deer stepped from the side of the road from directly behind a guard rail. No time to really do much. No air bags went off.

Took out the front bumper cover. Passenger side headlight, A/C condenser, radiator and assorted hardware associated with the condenser and radiator, some fuel vapor recovery plumbing, passenger side front fender, the front trunk lid, some passenger side suspension/steering hardware, front passenger tire. (The wheel was scuffed but ok otherwise but the wheel refinishing shop ruined the wheel somehow and it bought me a new one.) The passenger side front tire was a bit damaged and it was replaced along with the other side because of a bit too much difference between the new front tire and the one on the car.

There was no body/chassis/tub damage. Just the metal shelf the passenger fender bolts to was bent down a bit. The car was put on a Celette Bench and the shelf brought back into position and the new factory fender fitted just like, well, like factory.

Took almost 2 months to fully repair the car. All new factory parts used. Oh, the cost? $25K+. I had just bought the car the middle of June with just 10K miles and for $57.6K.

Car was fine afterwards and the CPO warranty which remained in effect afterwards covered some new car issues with no push back from Porsche.

Here's a pic of the damaged car:

 

Wow. Very similar damage. Difference is I had air bag deploy and from my observation the dash will need to be replaced. The insurance adjuster asked me how much I thought it would take to repair the damage & $20k was my rough estimate based on Porsche prices. Dealer market vaule is in the $35k range for 2006 w/ 78k miles. So the writing is on the wall for a total loss as far as % cost of repair to market value of the vehicle.

 

My Dad lives in the country, is an amateur horticulturist and has a large garden and many ornamental plants. The whitetail deer is his mortal enemy.

I have known him to go out of his way in his truck--not to avoid--but to intentionally clip a deer on the road.

I have toyed with the idea of getting him a bumper sticker that has a deer in the classic circle/slash motif with the caption "Hakuna Matata, Bitches!"

 

Interesting. It didn't occur to me until you said so, but yes, I guess the CPU did know that the top was down.

As my kids get older (and taller), I have wondered about the risk of the rollover bars deploying. Depending on the vectors involved, it would be possible for a backseat passenger's head to be tilted back, over the bar. If it deployed, the bars could smash right into the lower rear of a passenger's skull.

I assume they deploy upwards with great force? They are activated pyrotechnically, right?

As a result, I always assumed that they would not deploy unless wheels left the ground.

And if I haven't mentioned already, I am glad that you are ok.

 

Venison stew and sausages ...

The car looked pretty good for a total write-off ...

 

You are correct, a dash airbag deployed = New dash as it rips through the skin. If you have access to the car and have your original parts, time to swap it out to stock.

 

Official word, car is TOTALED! Was inspected multiple times. Finally the Supervisor looked at it and said it was obviously a total loss. Its more an issue of cost to repair than whether its repairable. A rough estimate on the cars market value was approximately $38k which is about right for what i see on Autotrader. Will get the offical number soon.

Now on to the next car shopping adventure. Short list is:
997.2 4S,
987.2 Boxster Spyder
981 Cayman S
996 Turbo

Thought briefly about a 964, or 911sc but not sure I want to go back to "classic Porsche life" (Ive owned a few). I enjoy the power, reliablity, and overall ability of the new generation of Porsche.

We'll see

 

That's probably a good thing, it will never feel like new again after it's repaired. My vote goes to the 997.2 4S or the 981 Cayman S. With the ridiculous prices they are trying to charged for the air cooled cars. I don't even bother. Nothing special about them one bit except the owners who thinks they got the best 911 ever. Old technology and outdated interiors, no thanks! After driving the 981, getting back into the 997 seems outdated.

 

The market clearly disagrees with you

That said, a 997.2 would be a nice replacement.

Good luck with everything

 

You are considering a Spyder or a Cayman S - both great 2WD choices. But why 4WD on the 911 platform? I can see the advantages of 4WD in certain regions, but the purest 911 driving is 2WD. Just for reference I owned 4WD 911s.

 

I vote 997.2 4s but I'm bias big time!

 

Me too...but Jay lives in SoCal and AWD seems unnecessary...unless he just wants those hips!

The Spyder would be my choice considering his last love was a Cab AND the most recent Spyde is just about the finest looking Porsche that was ever built...and performance is great for Jay's local roads.

Have a blast with the auditions, Jay!

 

Jaybird - Sorry about your loss and i am glad to hear your OK. I too have a 06 C2S and would be very interested in a bulk purchase should you decide to part out . Send me a PM and we can talk once your shock symptoms reside. Hope things sort out well for you.

 

The rollover bars in my 2009 C2S Cab were spring loaded, not pyrotechnic. This was a pre DE inspection item. The roll bars were electronically deployed with the PWIS hooked up to the car. The tech pushed the bars back down until they locked, then cleared the deployment out of the memory with the PWIS.

 

Bought a Spyder!

Decision came down to the opertunity to buy a "special" Porsche. You dont see many of these even in Porsche heavy Los Angeles. Its also the perfect car for how i drive....fun drives only. It definitely lacks everyday practicality as highlighted by my girlfriends question, "What do you do when it rains and the top is down." Not a big concern in SoCal most days. I owned a 987.1 Boxster at one point so this is familiar teritory for me. I already miss the lowend torque of the 997, but the lack of weight and improved balance of the Spyder is gonna be great on Angeles Crest. Im not afraid to modify this thing but it really doesn't need much.

With that said anybody need a DSC Sport module, steering wheel with Airbag, 997 Ducktail. PM or search ebay. May post in the classified section next week when i have a chance.